During Celtic’s League Cup victory over Hibernian on Sunday, a moment involving James Forrest stirred debate among fans and commentators.
Forrest, driving into the Hibs box, went down under a challenge from two defenders. Calls for a penalty were loud among some sections of the Celtic support, but on review, VAR stuck with the referee’s decision.
Football is inherently a contact sport, and in this instance, it appeared Forrest was simply outmuscled rather than fouled. The minimal contact did not seem to warrant a penalty, a viewpoint reinforced by commentator Peter Grant, who also agreed that the penalty should not be awarded. If he’s saying the referee has made the right call against Celtic, then it must be right! Gerry McCullough wasn’t too convinced, he thought Celtic were denied a spot kick.
How is this not a penalty? Gerry is as befuddled as the rest of us. pic.twitter.com/8yFn3FojP5
— e – GrandOLTeam (@JBLuvsCeltic) August 18, 2024
Despite the penalty appeal, Celtic went on to secure a 3-1 win, sending them into the Quarter-Finals of the League Cup, with a visit from Falkirk in store.
